Christian Standard Bible

English Standard Version

1Samuel died, and all Israel assembled to mourn for him, and they buried him by his home in Ramah. David then went down to the Wilderness of Paran.

1Now Samuel died. And all Israel assembled and mourned for him, and they buried him in his house at Ramah. Then David rose and went down to the wilderness of Paran.

2A man in Maon had a business in Carmel; he was a very rich man with three thousand sheep and one thousand goats and was shearing his sheep in Carmel.

2And there was a man in Maon whose business was in Carmel. The man was very rich; he had three thousand sheep and a thousand goats. He was shearing his sheep in Carmel.

3The man's name was Nabal, and his wife's name, Abigail. The woman was intelligent and beautiful, but the man, a Calebite, was harsh and evil in his dealings.

3Now the name of the man was Nabal, and the name of his wife Abigail. The woman was discerning and beautiful, but the man was harsh and badly behaved; he was a Calebite.

4While David was in the wilderness, he heard that Nabal was shearing sheep,

4David heard in the wilderness that Nabal was shearing his sheep.

5so David sent ten young men instructing them, "Go up to Carmel, and when you come to Nabal, greet him in my name.

5So David sent ten young men. And David said to the young men, “Go up to Carmel, and go to Nabal and greet him in my name.

6Then say this: 'Long life to you, and peace to you, peace to your family, and peace to all that is yours.

6And thus you shall greet him: ‘Peace be to you, and peace be to your house, and peace be to all that you have.

7I hear that you are shearing. When your shepherds were with us, we did not harass them, and nothing of theirs was missing the whole time they were in Carmel.

7I hear that you have shearers. Now your shepherds have been with us, and we did them no harm, and they missed nothing all the time they were in Carmel.

8Ask your young men, and they will tell you. So let my young men find favor with you, for we have come on a feast day. Please give whatever you have on hand to your servants and to your son David.'"

8Ask your young men, and they will tell you. Therefore let my young men find favor in your eyes, for we come on a feast day. Please give whatever you have at hand to your servants and to your son David.’”

9David's young men went and said all these things to Nabal on David's behalf, and they waited.

9When David’s young men came, they said all this to Nabal in the name of David, and then they waited.

10Nabal asked them, "Who is David? Who is Jesse's son? Many slaves these days are running away from their masters.

10And Nabal answered David’s servants, “Who is David? Who is the son of Jesse? There are many servants these days who are breaking away from their masters.

11Am I supposed to take my bread, my water, and my meat that I butchered for my shearers and give them to these men? I don't know where they are from."

11Shall I take my bread and my water and my meat that I have killed for my shearers and give it to men who come from I do not know where?”

12David's young men retraced their steps. When they returned to him, they reported all these words.

12So David’s young men turned away and came back and told him all this.

13He said to his men, "All of you, put on your swords!" So each man put on his sword, and David also put on his sword. About four hundred men followed David while two hundred stayed with the supplies.

13And David said to his men, “Every man strap on his sword!” And every man of them strapped on his sword. David also strapped on his sword. And about four hundred men went up after David, while two hundred remained with the baggage.

14One of Nabal's young men informed Abigail, Nabal's wife: "Look, David sent messengers from the wilderness to greet our master, but he screamed at them.

14But one of the young men told Abigail, Nabal’s wife, “Behold, David sent messengers out of the wilderness to greet our master, and he railed at them.

15The men treated us very well. When we were in the field, we weren't harassed and nothing of ours was missing the whole time we were living among them.

15Yet the men were very good to us, and we suffered no harm, and we did not miss anything when we were in the fields, as long as we went with them.

16They were a wall around us, both day and night, the entire time we were with them herding the sheep.

16They were a wall to us both by night and by day, all the while we were with them keeping the sheep.

17Now consider carefully what you should do, because there is certain to be trouble for our master and his entire family. He is such a worthless fool nobody can talk to him!"

17Now therefore know this and consider what you should do, for harm is determined against our master and against all his house, and he is such a worthless man that one cannot speak to him.”

18Abigail hurried, taking two hundred loaves of bread, two clay jars of wine, five butchered sheep, a bushel of roasted grain, one hundred clusters of raisins, and two hundred cakes of pressed figs, and loaded them on donkeys.

18Then Abigail made haste and took two hundred loaves and two skins of wine and five sheep already prepared and five seahs of parched grain and a hundred clusters of raisins and two hundred cakes of figs, and laid them on donkeys.

19Then she said to her male servants, "Go ahead of me. I will be right behind you." But she did not tell her husband Nabal.

19And she said to her young men, “Go on before me; behold, I come after you.” But she did not tell her husband Nabal.

20As she rode the donkey down a mountain pass hidden from view, she saw David and his men coming toward her and met them.

20And as she rode on the donkey and came down under cover of the mountain, behold, David and his men came down toward her, and she met them.

21David had just said, "I guarded everything that belonged to this man in the wilderness for nothing. He was not missing anything, yet he paid me back evil for good.

21Now David had said, “Surely in vain have I guarded all that this fellow has in the wilderness, so that nothing was missed of all that belonged to him, and he has returned me evil for good.

22May God punish me and do so severely if I let any of his males survive until morning."

22God do so to the enemies of David and more also, if by morning I leave so much as one male of all who belong to him.”

23When Abigail saw David, she quickly got off the donkey and knelt down with her face to the ground and paid homage to David.

23When Abigail saw David, she hurried and got down from the donkey and fell before David on her face and bowed to the ground.

24She knelt at his feet and said, "The guilt is mine, my lord, but please let your servant speak to you directly. Listen to the words of your servant.

24She fell at his feet and said, “On me alone, my lord, be the guilt. Please let your servant speak in your ears, and hear the words of your servant.

25My lord should pay no attention to this worthless fool Nabal, for he lives up to his name: His name means 'stupid,' and stupidity is all he knows. I, your servant, didn't see my lord's young men whom you sent.

25Let not my lord regard this worthless fellow, Nabal, for as his name is, so is he. Nabal is his name, and folly is with him. But I your servant did not see the young men of my lord, whom you sent.

26Now my lord, as surely as the LORD lives and as you yourself live--it is the LORD who kept you from participating in bloodshed and avenging yourself by your own hand--may your enemies and those who intend to harm my lord be like Nabal.

26Now then, my lord, as the LORD lives, and as your soul lives, because the LORD has restrained you from bloodguilt and from saving with your own hand, now then let your enemies and those who seek to do evil to my lord be as Nabal.

27Let this gift your servant has brought to my lord be given to the young men who follow my lord.

27And now let this present that your servant has brought to my lord be given to the young men who follow my lord.

28Please forgive your servant's offense, for the LORD is certain to make a lasting dynasty for my lord because he fights the LORD's battles. Throughout your life, may evil not be found in you.

28Please forgive the trespass of your servant. For the LORD will certainly make my lord a sure house, because my lord is fighting the battles of the LORD, and evil shall not be found in you so long as you live.

29"Someone is pursuing you and intends to take your life. My lord's life is tucked safely in the place where the LORD your God protects the living, but he is flinging away your enemies' lives like stones from a sling.

29If men rise up to pursue you and to seek your life, the life of my lord shall be bound in the bundle of the living in the care of the LORD your God. And the lives of your enemies he shall sling out as from the hollow of a sling.

30When the LORD does for my lord all the good he promised you and appoints you ruler over Israel,

30And when the LORD has done to my lord according to all the good that he has spoken concerning you and has appointed you prince over Israel,

31there will not be remorse or a troubled conscience for my lord because of needless bloodshed or my lord's revenge. And when the LORD does good things for my lord, may you remember me your servant."

31my lord shall have no cause of grief or pangs of conscience for having shed blood without cause or for my lord working salvation himself. And when the LORD has dealt well with my lord, then remember your servant.”

32Then David said to Abigail, "Blessed be the LORD God of Israel, who sent you to meet me today!

32And David said to Abigail, “Blessed be the LORD, the God of Israel, who sent you this day to meet me!

33May your discernment be blessed, and may you be blessed. Today you kept me from participating in bloodshed and avenging myself by my own hand.

33Blessed be your discretion, and blessed be you, who have kept me this day from bloodguilt and from working salvation with my own hand!

34Otherwise, as surely as the LORD God of Israel lives, who prevented me from harming you, if you had not come quickly to meet me, Nabal wouldn't have had any males left by morning light."

34For as surely as the LORD, the God of Israel, lives, who has restrained me from hurting you, unless you had hurried and come to meet me, truly by morning there had not been left to Nabal so much as one male.”

35Then David accepted what she had brought him and said, "Go home in peace. See, I have heard what you said and have granted your request."

35Then David received from her hand what she had brought him. And he said to her, “Go up in peace to your house. See, I have obeyed your voice, and I have granted your petition.”

36Then Abigail went to Nabal, and there he was in his house, holding a feast fit for a king. Nabal's heart was cheerful, and he was very drunk, so she didn't say anything to him until morning light.

36And Abigail came to Nabal, and behold, he was holding a feast in his house, like the feast of a king. And Nabal’s heart was merry within him, for he was very drunk. So she told him nothing at all until the morning light.

37In the morning when Nabal sobered up, his wife told him about these events. His heart died and he became a stone.

37In the morning, when the wine had gone out of Nabal, his wife told him these things, and his heart died within him, and he became as a stone.

38About ten days later, the LORD struck Nabal dead.

38And about ten days later the LORD struck Nabal, and he died.

39When David heard that Nabal was dead, he said, "Blessed be the LORD who championed my cause against Nabal's insults and restrained his servant from doing evil. The LORD brought Nabal's evil deeds back on his own head." Then David sent messengers to speak to Abigail about marrying him.

39When David heard that Nabal was dead, he said, “Blessed be the LORD who has avenged the insult I received at the hand of Nabal, and has kept back his servant from wrongdoing. The LORD has returned the evil of Nabal on his own head.” Then David sent and spoke to Abigail, to take her as his wife.

40When David's servants came to Abigail at Carmel, they said to her, "David sent us to bring you to him as a wife."

40When the servants of David came to Abigail at Carmel, they said to her, “David has sent us to you to take you to him as his wife.”

41She stood up, paid homage with her face to the ground, and said, "Here I am, your servant, a slave to wash the feet of my lord's servants."

41And she rose and bowed with her face to the ground and said, “Behold, your handmaid is a servant to wash the feet of the servants of my lord.”

42Then Abigail got up quickly, and with her five female servants accompanying her, rode on the donkey following David's messengers. And so she became his wife.

42And Abigail hurried and rose and mounted a donkey, and her five young women attended her. She followed the messengers of David and became his wife.

43David also married Ahinoam of Jezreel, and the two of them became his wives.

43David also took Ahinoam of Jezreel, and both of them became his wives.

44But Saul gave his daughter Michal, David's wife, to Palti son of Laish, who was from Gallim.

44Saul had given Michal his daughter, David’s wife, to Palti the son of Laish, who was of Gallim.

The Christian Standard Bible. Copyright © 2017 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission.

ESV Text Edition: 2016. The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®) copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. The ESV® text has been reproduced in cooperation with and by permission of Good News Publishers. Unauthorized reproduction of this publication is prohibited. All rights reserved.